Working for the best
independent beer retailer in the country (as voted for by the people
at Off licence News) certainly has its perks.
I took home a selection
of beers the other night. Being relatively new to this 'Craft beer'
scene and having what must be over 1000 beers in the assortment, I
thought it was time that I got my butt into gear and ploughed through
them. After all, the best way to recommend a product is from personal
experience. I don't think I'll make it though the lot though simply
due to the fact that the assortment is forever changing. It is an
impossible task but I'll do my best.
The first beer out was
another one from Beavertown, London. 'Neck Oil' a session IPA. With
the overwhelming success of Gamma Ray the other night I was itching
to get into this one. The can stands out nearly as much but instead
of bright blue and orange with aliens zapping humans, it is bright
yellow with skulls or heads, some kinds of faces anyway. A simple yet
effective design. The beer suits the can or vice-versa. It is a
mellow, fruity beer, light body with a crisp citrus finish. As
opposed to Gamma Ray, I could drink these all day and everyday. 'Neck
Oil' is a great name for such a beer.
With the release of
'Bloody Ell', a blood orange IPA. What's not to get all jumpy up and
down about. I like IPAs I like blood orange juice, therefore I have
to like this. By the time I start my next shift we should have some
in stock. I would say we'll have a fridge full but one can't be sure.
The second one out of
the fridge was a Japanese craft beer, Hitachino Nest from the Kiuchi Brewery. The
labels all have a little owl in the middle surrounded by both English
and Japanese writing. They are snazzy little labels, they look 'the
biz'. I chose the 'Red Rice Ale', it sounded strange. A beer brewed
using red rice. I felt like a forensic pathologist about to enter a
crime scene and begin an investigation of sorts, my investigation was
what is this beer like.
When I poured it into a
glass I was taken aback at how viscous a liquid it was. It was a
thick and reddish brown in colour, it was like no beer I'd ever seen
before. You could say it shares some similarities to a barley wine.
The taste is what really did it for me. It is sweet and savoury at
the same time, creamy and full bodied. Malty yet at the same time
having some odd flavour, slightly toasty, an unfamiliar flavour. That
must be the red rice element to this beer. In some ways you could
compare the style to that of an abbey beer but a little bit
different. One I would have again and will always go to for people
who are after trying something a little out of the ordinary.
The final and third
beer of the sitting requires a post all to itself. It's a beer that
is that special it needs to be on its own.
Cans that will turn you on.
Something out of the ordinary.
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